Is a skimmer necessary??

[SULFERHEAD93]

hey everybody. Still in the planning stages of my 29 gallon reef tank. I was wondering iv a skimmer is necessary for a tank this size? I was planning to use a fluval 406. I have 2 405s on my 75 cichlid tank and the 4 trays have plenty of room for carbon,gfo and whatever else you can put in there.

 

[troyman]

not as long as you are faithfull to your water changes

 

[HaKs310]

Necessary? No.

Nice to have in some situations? Yes.

 

[ChrisL1976]

It just gives you a larger margin for laziness.....not that anyone is ever be lazy about tank maintenance.

 

[SULFERHEAD93]

not as long as you are faithfull to your water changes

so how often would you recommend doing water changes and what %?

 

[ange062]

+1 to above. Is it required? Absolutely not. Is it the best idea? Absolutely yes. It's going to provide the best long term solution for keeping your tank in good shape. With or without a skimmer I suggest weekly water changes of 20% in a nano, I think most here would agree.

 

[6Speed]

I like to run a skimmer and do weekly wc so I don't have to run carbon and all that other stuff. Just some extra live rock in the sump, a skimmer, and a 25% weekly change. Pretty simple chore list for saturday mornings! My glass only needs to be wiped down about once per week. All tests for ammonia, trites, trates are zero and my calcium and alk stay high because of the large volume water changes.

20 gallon display with about 5 gallon sump. I do 5 gallon change every Saturday.

 

[troyman]

i change 5 gallons a week in a 24 gallon and have a skimmer

 

[-RYknow]

Good posts above. I'm planning on 5 gallon changes each week once my 20 long is setup. I do have a skimmer for it (Aquamaxx HOB-1). Water quality is key, and a skimmer is only going to help!

-RYknow

 

[lauremf2002]

I havent had a skimmer for a couple of years now and it has never been a problem. I like a very light bio load though. If you plan on heavily stocking your tank, I would get one

 

[plyle02]

I would run a skimmer on anything of 5 gallons or more, just me, but unless weekly LARGE water changes are made, or unless you plan on keeping a very light bioload, a skimmer will always provide peace of mind. Most skimmers will skim and collect, even with liverock and sand only. So once you begin to add life, their waste must be consumed in some aspect of the system, whether lots of liverock, deep sandbed, macro algaes to feed on nutrients, micro-life, filter feeders, etc, you will likely need to have some if not all of these strategies in mind with water changes for longterm stability, and believe me, I have been around long enough to see many examples of skimmerless success... I know a LFS who used to do 100% weekly water changes in a Solana by using the main system's display water... Not only did he run a skimmer, but upgraded from the stock to the Tunze 9002 nano skimmer. So, not necessary, but always a great idea...

 

[ComponentFault]

I was surprised at how much my skimmer pulled out - and I only have one fish, one shrimp, one crab and a bunch of snails at the moment. I also run a media basket with Chemi-pure Elite and Purigen, and the skimmer still pulls a ton out.

I'm sure it can be managed fine with water changes as well, but I personally feel better that the water is being cleaned in real-time.

 

[daviesri]

I change 5 gallons in my 29 biocube every two weeks and never run the skimmer I thought I needed. When I run it I barely get anything from it and I would just as not have that additional noise due to how sensitive it is on water level. I have maroon clown, a yellow tail damsel, watchman vivid, a small yellow tang (yes I know) and a 6" rbta.

 

[didz04]

I have seen some tanks known to only skim and don't do water changes for 6 months to a year and their sps are still growing strong. Every tank is different and it depends on whats best for you.

 

[SULFERHEAD93]

So all a skimmer does is pull out the gunk in your tank. Don't sponges do the same thing?

 

[rudeanduncouth]

Sponges are only mechanical filtration and tend to do more harm than good. Protein skimmers get out the stuff that is dissolved in the water. I do not intend to run a skimmer in my cube, but I will have a refugium full of chaeto for nutrient removal.

 

[SULFERHEAD93]

Sponges are only mechanical filtration and tend to do more harm than good. Protein skimmers get out the stuff that is dissolved in the water. I do not intend to run a skimmer in my cube, but I will have a refugium full of chaeto for nutrient removal.

What do you mean by "more harm then good" do they hold bad bacteria?

 

[suoirotoN]

I was also wondering this. I plan on getting a 20L and was wondering if i should get a HOB skimmer or do you guys think I could get away with like a powerhead fliter for a 50 gal and maybe a power head for flow. Would this work out if i decided to do some corals down the line... still kind of a beginner. thanks in advance!

 

[suoirotoN]

anyone?

 

[troyman]

i think that is fine be more concerned with your lighting